Trencherfield Mill Celebrates 110 Years

During 2017/18 Trencherfield Mill will celebrate 110 years of history with a number of events.

If you'd like to share stories of working life in The Mill or Wigan Pier, please contact;
Dave King - davekinguk@gmail.com



www.wigan.gov.uk / @tfm_engineers

Trencherfield Mill Steam Engine - Visit Information
Open every Sunday, you can see the steam engine in action on 'Steaming Sundays'.



Provisional dates for the Steaming Sundays left this year:



Steaming Sundays
Adult: £4, Children under 12 and concessions: £2, Family ticket: £10

Other Sundays (engine not operating/guided tour and presentation only)
Adult: £2, Children under 12 & concessions: £1, Family ticket: £5

it's definitely worth a look

Yes, it certainly is, I-Spy.

Volunteering - Link

There are lots of ways people can get involved at Trencherfield Mill, with or without any prior knowledge or expertise, including:

• Cleaning, care and general upkeep of the engine
• Helping interpret the engine’s history
• Visitor reception and customer care
• Assisting at special events and activities

Training and support will be provided.

anybody know if Trencherfield is older than Eckersleys

According to Wiki, Trencherfield was built in 1907, Eckersleys was much older, around 1883.

Trencherfield Mill was originally opened by W.Woods in 1820.

Thanks, Tonker, I didn't know the present building is actually the third.

"Trencherfield Mill was erected in 1907 by William Woods & Son Ltd. The present building is actually the third Trencherfield Mill, with the two earlier mills dating from c.1820 and 1851 respectively. The distinctive name of the mills derives from the Trencher Meadow in which all three mills were built."

www.trencherfieldmill.co.uk/history

On this day 109 years ago:

The new Mill officially opened on 3rd October, 1908, and included the traditional ‘christening’ of the engine. The two sides of the engine were named after William Woods’ daughters: Helen and Rina.

I should've known the mill is the third having seen this board many time before.





Trencherfield Mill (1907)
• This is the third mill to be built on this site in Trencher Meadow.
• It was commissioned by William Woods, a local coal, cotton and machine building entrepreneur.
• One of the country's first fire sprinkler systems, imported from America, was installed in the mill.
• Trencherfield Mill housed 60,000 ring and 24,000 mule spindles (devices for spinning yarn). The cotton spun here was taken to other mill towns to be woven.
• The Trencherfield Mill Steam Engine is the largest of its type in its original setting and with its rope race intact.
• At full steam, the engine would have produced 2,500 horsepower; enough to run machinery over five floors and the central heating system.

What's written on the left hand side of the board:

When Cotton Was King
As told by a cotton worker circa 1910

"It's hot int' mill wi' lots o' noise. On a nice day, we'll take our lunch ont' towpath an' eat snaps from't snap tins."

It's a 5.5 day week for us cotton worker; that's 12 hours a day and half day Saturday.
We've all got nimble fingers, especially the 'Piecers'. They're mainly children who nip under the spinning machines to tie the broken cotton back together.

Some of us work on the spinning machines and some on the carding machines. The mill takes a raw bale of cotton, cleans it, twists it and spins it into fine yarn.

The humidity in the mill keeps the cotton damp so it's easier to spin without snapping.

There are five floors of machinery - all powered by the Trencherfield Mill Engine.
The noise is deafening - we stuff cotton from the floor in our ears to protect them.
We communicate using 'Me-Mawing', a mixture of sign language and lip reading.

We work in our bare feet because our clogs could spark on the concrete floor and set the cotton bales alight.

"We wake early doors to the sound of the Trencherfield steam whistle. Summonin' us t'mill for another day. But as thee say - England's bread hangs on Lancashire's thread."

Trencherfield Mill - @tfm_engineers (25 Nov):

Don't forget we'll be in steam tomorrow. It is the penultimate Steaming Sunday of 2017.
#trencherfieldmill #wigan #heritage #steamingsunday #penultimate #steaming

I do not believe the phrase 'early doors' would have been said in this context in 1910.

Although the phrase was in use in 1910, it was not being used simply to mean early, which is a much more recent construction.

early doors

I think Eckersley Mill came into existence in three stages

I worked in the Trencherfield mill during the eighties and I was there and saw the Queen when she visited. We weren't allowed out of the factory but we watched from the windows.
It was then in use by a company named Courtaulds, who manufactured bedding, curtains, towels etc, for M&S, Next, Dorma and others.
Like many other companies of that era Courtaulds took it's business overseas where the labour was cheaper and as a result we were made redundant and the factory lay redundant for many years.

I have a lot of good memories of my years there. The camaraderie of the mainly female workforce was fantastic.

Camaraderie ....

I bet you and your workmates used to call men all the time

Don't talk crap. We talked about anything but men. We were grafting to pay mortgages, bringing up kids, trying to fit everything into a working day. Who was looking after kids, who was picking them up who was first home to cook a meal etc, etc, etc. Just the same today if you are working parents and work as a team.
You don't have much idea, obviously

Jathbee.

Heritage Day - Wigan Events Guide

Monday 7th May, 10am - 4pm

Annual Bank Holiday event at Trencherfield Mill, celebrating 110 years!
With fairground rides, stalls, live music, the mighty Trencherfield Steam Engine, exhibitions and much more.



Steaming Sundays (may change at short notice)
* April - 29th
* May - 7th (Heritage Day) and 20th
* June - 3rd and 17th
* July - 1st, 15th and 29th
* August - 5th and 19th
* September - 9th and 23rd
* October - 7th, 21st and 24th (Power Fest)
* November - 11th and 25th
* December - 9th

* Heritage Day today - Mon 7th May, 10am till 4pm - Trencherfield Mill Link *

"Steaming Sunday" - on a Monday?

110 Years at Trencherfield Mill (BWCN Newsletter)

Saturday 27th October at 7.30pm

ALRA Theatre at Trencherfield Mill, Wigan, WN3 4BF

ALRA North West are presenting a theatrical performance based on the working lives of people in Trencherfield Mill.
The performances will be written, directed and performed by ALRA North Graduates and
current students.

This production has been funded by Deal For The Communities Development Fund round 5.

I’ll post further details when I find out more.

Historic Wigan steam engine will not close (Wigan Today, 28th Sep)

“The council is looking into the future options for the Trencherfield Mill steam engine and working on a plan to build on what the engine offers to the borough.
“As part of this we are looking at the wider site where the engine is based and realising the huge potential it has.”

Why did women tuck the bottom corner of their apron into the waistband. Was it to prevent things falling from pockets or a safety measure? It seems to have been a common practice.

Jathbee: You may know my youngest sister, Karin.

Also, my mother, Sister Jarvis, was factory nurse during that time.

whether it is of interest or not i remember seeing woman coming down Bridgeman terrace by the park with lots of cotton fluff intheir HAIR AND IT WAS I THINK CALLED FLAX, AFTER WORKING ON THE LOOM,S AT RYLANDS MILL NEAR THE MESNES [ARK

Sorry it’s so last minute but ...

@tfm_engineers:
Interested in attending the event tomorrow, get in touch with ALRA as quickly as possible to make sure you don’t miss out! - There’s an exclusive tour and running of the engine, plus a one of a kind, unique performance courtesy of ALRA students and graduates!

ALRA North, Mill at the Pier, Trencherfield Mill, Wigan, WN3 4BF
01942 821021
info@alra.co.uk

There’ll be an exclusive tour at 6pm followed by the production at 7.30pm